Monthly Archives: September 2013

How could anyone resist sporting a cheap nylon apron and thin vinyl mask to go as one of your all-time favorite characters, i.e. Jaws, the motorcycle guy in the Village People, Rubiks Cube, or perhaps one of the Beatles or Mr T or even Alf. All great costumes, indeed. There were many companies that put out these kinds of costumes but Ben Cooper and Collegeville were the Kings. Hard to see out of (perfect for dark busy trafficked streets) either too tight or too loose (one size does not fit all) and completely cheap and and weird, these were the easy way out for 1950’s and 60’s kids and moms. For $2.00 you could be almost anybody or anything – badly.

Frank Marshall is a South African photographer who has gained popularity recently with his latest show of 60 portraits, titled Renegades. In these shots Frank has documented the Heavy Metal subculture in, of all places, Botswana. Showing that Heavy Metal is not just for white western mall teens, Franks Botswanian fans have taken the Motorhead look to heart. With tons of leather clothing, studs, skulls, metal jewelry, cowboy hats and fringe, they look like a bunch of Lemmy’s gone crazy. Just like every other place in the world, it’s all about the music, the look and sharing a common bond w/ your mates. Exactly what music culture should be

Hammer – a British film and TV production company started in 1936, with many stops and starts continues to make films to this day, (most recently The Woman in Black starring Daniel Radcliffe). It’s most successful period began with the release of 1957’s Curse of Frankenstein and continued into the early 1970’s. Taking the concept of the old horror film characters – Frankenstein, Darcula, The Mummy, tipping the stories completely sideways, adding a healthy dollop of heaving naked bosoms and bright saturated colors, Hammer had found their niche. The posters, for the most part, were just as lurid, almost always showing the monster and the frightened girl. Hammer delved into other genres as well for awhile, sci-fi, drama, Sherlock Holmes, film noir – but they’re best known for their horror. As we’re just weeks away from Halloween, what better way to start the countdown than with this gorgeous artwork from some truly weird films.

1938 Gum Inc. Horrors of War is one of the most famous trading card sets of all-time. Equal parts gruesome and gorgeous, the historically based set remains widely sought after decades later. 1938 Gum Inc. Horrors of War is a large set — 288 cards divided into two series. The original set has 240 cards that focus on the Spanish Civil War, Ethiopian War and the Chinese-Japanese War. The final 48 cards came later as a supplemental release. Among these cards are three that show Adolf Hitler, who was now a threat to the world.

The images on the front are full of color and detail. Many of the images are shocking, even today. Nothing is held back. Scenes of torture, bloody battlefields and children under attack are all shown in the set. The colors are vibrant, further adding to the set’s distinct visuals. Backs offer detailed descriptions of what’s happening on the card. The writing is equally lively and colorful. A little smaller than today’s’ Bubblegum cards and about the size of a normal business card, the cards measure 3 1/8″ by 2 1/2″.

President Franklin D. Roosevelt allegedly used the cards to show people some of the horrific things that were happening overseas. At the time, America was still recovering from WWI and there was little support to get involved in the increasing unstable environment overseas. And while some politicians mocked Roosevelt, the attention helped push the set’s popularity to new levels.

Between 1975 and 1977, Michael Abramson hit Chicago’s South Side night clubs – Perv’s House, Pepper’s Hideout, The High Chaparral, The Patio Lounge, and The Showcase Lounge, not to capture the artists on stage, but to shoot the lively, mostly black, mostly youngish crowd. These were inner city, working mans clubs. Dancin’, drinkin’ and fightin’ was the weekend norm, and then back to work on Monday. These photos were first published in Abramsom’s thesis Black Night Clubs of Chicago’s South Side. Many of these were later published in a photography book / 2 LP record set entitled Light on the South Side (2009), The collection of music featured on the LPs are blues songs by mostly Chicago recording artists, and reflect what was actually playing on the jukeboxes in these clubs at the time.

All these come from about 1963-1966. It’s hard to believe that The Beatles even existed in the same time period as, say, Howlin’ Wolf or Etta James, and that the Stones were ever second on a bill to Brian Poole and the Tremelos, or that the opener for The Monkees could have been The Jimi Hendrix Experiance. Design-wise, they are beautiful. Usually cheaply produced, hand silk screened on heavy paper with minimal colors and tons of fonts. They would be sent to venues with a blank portion, usually the top, were the club could include their own name, dates and cost (Jesus Christ man – Howlin Wolf and Muddy Waters for $4.00).